Positive Self-Talk as a Cognitive Control Mechanism in Sport Performance: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Athletes across competitive sports rely on deliberate internal verbal dialogue to manage the psychological demands of performance. Positive self-talk (PST), defined as purposeful, self-directed verbal cues used to guide cognitive and emotional states, has attracted substantial empirical attention, yet its mediator and moderator evidence has never been integrated into a single explanatory account. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, this systematic review synthesized evidence from 42 peer-reviewed empirical studies (2000–2024) involving competitive athletes, identified through comprehensive multi-database searching, structured eligibility screening, and formal risk-of-bias appraisal, with evidence stratified by design quality and conclusions anchored to experimental studies using objective performance outcomes. Four themes were identified: (1) attentional precision, whereby instructional PST directs attention to task-relevant information in technically demanding tasks; (2) cognitive stabilization, the capacity of PST to steady thinking under stress by helping athletes reinterpret arousal as helpful and interrupt negative self-talk cycles; (3) motivational persistence, with motivational PST sustaining effort under fatigue through self-efficacy pathways (in one study, self-talk dimensions explained 40% of variance in sport confidence; R² = .40, p < .001); and (4) contextual moderation, meaning that PST effectiveness depends on task type, athlete experience, and individual characteristics such as trait anxiety. The principal meta-analysis reported a moderate overall effect of d = 0.48 (Hatzigeorgiadis et al., 2011). The review contributes an integrative, hypothesis-generating framework that organizes established mediator and moderator findings into a unified cognitive control account of PST, yielding falsifiable predictions while acknowledging that its neurocognitive layer awaits direct empirical testing. In practical terms, structured PST training can support attentional focus, emotional regulation, and motivational persistence, making it a viable psychological skill for athletes in high-pressure contexts.